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Elderly Depression: 5 Effective Treatments

Thursday, March 15th, 2012

Elderly depression can often be difficult to treat due to the variety of factors that can contribute to depression in the elderly. Options for treatment of elderly depression seem more limited than those for younger individuals due to the higher likelihood of medical factors contributing to the disorder in senior citizens, dementia being particularly difficult to work around.

For those seeking help through medication, this also becomes more complicated, as their bodies may react differently than a younger patient, and they are more likely to be taking other medications that could pose a risk if combined with antidepressants. There are, however, 5 proven approaches to easing elderly depression:

1. Increasing Social Interaction

Relieving loneliness, through any method, is especially recommended for cases of mild depression. Psychosocial treatment can consist of participation in group exercise or group discussions about various topics. The topic need not be depression. Simple interaction with others often relieves symptoms of depression. Sometimes social interaction is not even necessary. Just going on a walk may be enough to deal with mild depression.

2. Light Therapy

Recent studies have shown that bright light can ease depression in many depression patients, including the elderly. Just one hour of exposure to bright light every day has been shown to have dramatic effects in battling depression symptoms. The wonderful thing about this approach is that it can work equally well on patients with dementia, since the light seems to cause a chemical response which is not impaired by the person’s connection with the reality around him or her.

3. Talk therapy

Traditional talk therapy is an old favorite of psychologists for a very good reason. It simply works for a lot of people. If an elderly person is free of dementia and does not suffer from a severe form of depression, talk therapy might be sufficient to deal with their depression symptoms.

4. Antidepressant Medication to treat Elderly Depression

If an elderly person’s depression is more severe, if it lasts longer or seems to seriously debilitate him or her, then it may be necessary to administer antidepressants. This may be necessary more often in people who suffer from symptoms of dementia as well as depression. Talk therapy and social interaction are often not feasible with such cases.

The recommended anti-depressants for such cases are serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). These drugs increase the amount of chemicals in the brain that stave off depression. However, these should be a last resort because they also cause thinning of bones. If you care for the elderly, you know that fractures, especially hip fractures, are a grave concern.

5. Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT)

There is a form of shock therapy known as electroconvulsive therapy, or ECT. In general, caregivers do not have a good reaction when they initially hear about this type of treatment. However, it has been proven to have good effects in many patients and is not as violent as it may sound. One possible side effect, however, is loss of memory, so particular care must be taken in elderly patients who are inherently at a higher risk for memory loss than younger patients.

Article from Assisted Living Today.

Tags: Bright light therapy, Depression, Elderly, Light Therapy, light therapy for sad, Medication, SAD, SAD light, SAD lights, Seasonal Affective Disorder, Senior Citizen, Severe Depression, Social Interaction, Therapy, Treatment, Winter Blues, Winter Depression
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Mental Illness in the Workplace

Wednesday, March 14th, 2012

The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health estimates that mental health conditions are responsible for approximately 30% of all disability claims and 70% of the associated plan costs.

Employers dealing with these costs—and the related lost productivity—are understandably focused on getting employees who are dealing with mental health issues back to work as quickly as possible, in a suitable state to fulfill their duties. Achieving this requires three crucial elements: early identification and diagnosis of mental health concerns; an effective treatment plan; and a return-to-work strategy that enables the employee to gradually ease back into work life.

Identification and diagnosis
According to research published in the Journal of American Medicine, an estimated 40% of mental health-related cases are misdiagnosed or underdiagnosed, resulting in incorrect or insufficient treatment. Further, more than 50% of cases do not receive treatment at all. This is disturbing when you consider the impact that psychological illness can have on an individual’s ability to function, both in and out of the workplace. Clearly, the ability to identify a psychological illness early is paramount.

Those in supervisory roles who are in close contact with employees on a daily basis can come to understand their employees’ unique personality traits. With appropriate training, supervisors are ideally positioned to identify changes in employee behaviour that may signal the onset of mental health concerns. A properly trained supervisor can also effectively separate workplace issues such as harassment from those with psychological roots (e.g., a clinical mental illness, such as depression).

For example, according to the Canadian Mental Health Association, between 2% and 3% of Canadians may have seasonal affective disorder (SAD), though many may not realize it. A trained supervisor may recognize that an employee with a high number of absences in January and February—and who lacks concentration and misses deadlines during the winter months—may be affected by SAD. That employee could then be prompted to seek appropriate care, begin treatment and return to a fully functioning state.

Treatment plan
Treatment is another key component in effective psychological claims management. It is often left to the family physician to identify problems and initiate treatment while waiting for a formal appointment with a specialist. Too often, this means losing precious time through suboptimal prescriptions or inappropriate treatment. Employers should include wording in their benefits plan booklets to ensure that a specialist diagnosis is required for mental illness claims.

Back-to-work strategy
Effective diagnosis and treatment are essential to understanding an employee’s psychological and cognitive capabilities and how they align with the demands of a particular job. This understanding can help an employer to develop an effective transitional back-to-work plan. An individual who is recovering from an episode of depression, for example, may have a decreased ability to concentrate. A progressive, time-limited back-to-work plan—which could include short, specific tasks with written step-by-step instructions for each—and an environment with minimal disruptions can help the employee work his or her way back into a regular routine.

Mental health issues will likely remain a key concern for workplace productivity and claims management. However, the implementation of a pragmatic approach to identification, treatment and recovery can help to minimize the long-term effects and improve outcomes for employees and employers alike.

Tags: Bipolar Disorder, Bright light therapy, Depression, Doctor, Light box, Light Therapy, Mental Illness, SAD, SAD light, SAD lights, Seasonal Affective Disorder, Severe Depression, Sleep disorders, Sleep Routine, Treatment, Winter Blues, Winter Depression, Work
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Recognize SAD

Friday, February 17th, 2012

Many parts of the United States has recenlty been hit with snow, rain or just plain cold temperature. It’s also when people are really feeling SAD. And by SAD I mean their Seasonal Affective Disorder.

Recognizing the Onset of SAD

Are your mood swings more aggravated during winter? Do you feel a deep sense of unexplained sadness? Do you experience a change in your sleeping patterns, such as sleeping for longer periods of time, or not being able to sleep? Do you seem to put on weight or lose weight during winter?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, you could be suffering from SAD. The symptoms of depression begin to manifest towards the end of the fall season and escalate as winter begins. Gradually, your mood takes a turn for the worst, but they disappear during the spring and summer. This type of depression is not triggered by a traumatic incident, which gives psychiatrists a specific issue to pinpoint and tackle, but is unexplainable.

If you think you have SAD you should talk to your doctor, in order to be diagnosed by a doctor, you usually have to have had the same symptoms for three years in a row.

What is the Underlying Cause of SAD?

After years of studying SAD, doctors have proven evidence that the lack of sunlight is the main cause of SAD. In recent studies, doctors have found that a person’s genes, hormones, age, and physiological factors may also play a role in making a person more susceptible to developing SAD.

The production of melatonin happens during the night, and when the nights are long, our bodies produce an increased amount of melatonin, causing the onset of depression. In turn, depression interrupts our sleep and thus the production of serotonin – the brain chemical that affects our ability to feel pleasure – is whittled down.

Finding a Cure for SAD

Light Therapy

Light is an effective form of treatment for SAD. It is often referred to as bright light therapy, which utilizes light therapy boxes to provide broad spectrum lightning that replicates daylight. You will need to sit at 24 inches from a uniquely-designed bright light therapy box that emits 10,000 lux. The treatment lasts for 30 minutes and should be done within the first hour of getting up in the morning.

Keep Warm

Sunlight and warmth go hand in hand. In researching the need for additional light, doctors found that warmth also has a positive effect on combating SAD. It’s not necessary to turn up the heat in the entire home with costly energy. Just get cozy by bundling up in your warmest clothes and using a portable heater. A nice roaring fire is also a great way to keep warm by also adding additional light to your brightly lit home.

Vitamin D

Lack of sunlight decreases the amount of Vitamin D that is found in our blood. Through blood tests done on people suffering from SAD, it was found that their bodies were deficient in Vitamin D. Taking a daily dose of Vitamin D can counter the symptoms of SAD as it alleviates fatigue and depression naturally. It can be taken as a dietary pill supplement, or through the food you eat, such as some warm hot chocolate made with fortified Vitamin D milk.

So get rid of your winter blues and embrace the winter season the way it was meant to be enjoyed. Take action and practice the benefits that can help you defeat SAD.

Tags: 10000 lux, Bright light therapy, Depression, Light box, Light Therapy, SAD, SAD light, SAD lights, Seasonal Affective Disorder, Severe Depression, Sleep, Treatment, Vitamin D, Winter Blues, Winter Depression
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Teens Fight the Winter Blues

Monday, January 16th, 2012

Invariably there will be boredom during the winter months.

Many teens may not deal with it directly. There’s always something else to get in the way be it school work part–time jobs sports or hanging out with friends. But there’s always the misery of being cooped up inside. And as of late it’s been particularly miserable — the weather is bitterly cold and windy and there’s not even any snow to make up for it.

What to do?

“I just try and stay as warm as possible and avoid going outside because it’s freezing” Elizabethtown senior Caitlin Wilson said. “I have also been reading a lot of books.”

Many people are plagued by seasonal affective disorder also called winter blues or seasonal depression during this time of year. The U.S. National Library of Medicine has said that “some people experience a serious mood change when the seasons change. They may sleep too much have little energy and may also feel depressed. Though symptoms can be severe they usually clear up.”

Long discounted by skeptics seasonal affective disorder has now been diagnosed as a common mood disorder. It is a fact that mood and personality play a large role in identifying a patient with it. But would there be a biological factor in the disorder as well?

“Our levels of serotonin a mood–elevating chemical drop in the winter months causing us to feel down” telegraph.co.uk stated in an article. “Scientists from the Center for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto Canada have found that as the days become shorter we produce high levels of a protein which interferes with serotonin. The protein is a serotonin transporter which helps the “happy” chemical to flow around the brain. When this protein becomes more active in the winter it soaks up the serotonin that lies between our brain cells causing levels to fall.”

There are many treatments such as antidepressant medication and light therapy but those would be some of the more drastic measures. There are far more fun ways to combat the winter blues such as focusing on New Year’s resolutions relaxing with friends and family or even a teen favorite sleeping.

Elizabethtown Area High School senior Meghan Kreider prefers a similar option.

“I’ve been watching a lot of movies on my laptop. I won’t even get off of my futon” she said. “It’s sad but I live in my ‘man cave’ as I like to call it and stay under the covers.”

And good news for coffee lovers: Time Magazine states that “a recent analysis of data from the massive Nurses’ Health Study found that women who drank more than four cups of coffee a day had a 20 percent lower risk of depression than women who drank less. The research did not include men but there’s little reason to suspect a wildly different effect in them.”

Feelgooder.com offers meeting new people and socializing with old friends as good options to avoiding the doldrums of winter. Another way to beat the boredom suggested Elizabethtown junior Amanda Matta is trying different activities.

“I’ve been doing a lot of strange things I wouldn’t normally do” Matta said. “Like yesterday I came home from school baked chocolate chip cookies polished my riding boots then watched two hours of ‘Big Bang Theory.’ And ate a lot of cookies.”

So if the keys to happiness during the winter months can be obtained through activity exposure to bright lights socializing relaxing eating cookies and drinking coffee it would seem relatively simple to keep from falling into seasonal affective disorder. Personal motivation plays a key role and in the end it is all up to the individual.

Article is from the PennLive.com site. Read the article here.

Tags: Bright light therapy, Depression, Light box, Light Therapy, SAD, SAD light, SAD lights, Seasonal Affective Disorder, Severe Depression, Sleep disorders, Teens, Treatment, Winter Blues, Winter Depression
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January Blues

Friday, January 13th, 2012

The third Monday in January (16) has become known as Blue Monday, or the most depressing day of the year, due to a combination of poor weather, the post-Christmas blues, and mounting debt. Whether or not this is the most depressing day of the year, January can be one the months most associated with a low mood and the disorder known as seasonal affective disorder (SAD).

Symptoms of SAD may consist of difficulty sleeping or difficulty waking up in the morning, lack of energy, difficulty concentrating, weight gain, irritability, and withdrawal from friends, family, and social activities; all of which can lead on to depression and a feeling of hopelessness. Here Dr Abbie Lane a consultant psychiatrist from the stress clinic based at Saint John of God Hospital, a leading provider of mental health services and treatments in Ireland, offers some advice on dealing with the disorder:

Keep busy and active: “If you experience some of the symptoms of SAD it is important to engage in pleasurable activities during the winter months. Develop a repertoire of wintertime leisure interests; join an exercise class, take a language course, volunteer locally or join a club.”

Use the daylight we do have: “Make sure to spend as much time outdoors during the daylight hours as possible. Make a habit of taking a 30 minute walk at lunch time and when indoors keep curtains open during the day and move furniture to position yourself near a window.”

Avoid temptations: “When at home resist sleeping too much and eating unhealthy junk food, these are temptations that accompany SAD that are not good for your long-term well-being. Try to keep to a daily routine, even at weekends, and be careful about how much alcohol you consume.”

Try mindfulness: “Use meditation to increase your awareness of negative thoughts. Focus on awareness techniques, such as deep breathing, to bring your attention back to the present. Gradually you will begin to observe your thought processes rather than reacting to it, relieving feelings of negativity.”

Use problem solving techniques: “If you feel worried or anxious during January create a list of problems, identify possible solutions, choose the best solutions, create a plan to implement them and then evaluate the outcomes with respect to the problem.”

Share your problems: “If you experience any of the symptoms of SAD confide in a friend or loved one. Talk to someone. If you are faced with persistent anxiety or low moods, severe sleep or appetite disturbance, a constant feeling of guilt, hopelessness or unworthiness then seek professional assistance.”

Remember there is hope: “No matter how bad things can appear, chart your progress in a small diary and each day look at three positive things about yourself and three positive things that you have done – and that can include getting out of bed.”

Tags: Bright light therapy, Depression, Light box, Light Therapy, SAD, SAD light, SAD lights, Seasonal Affective Disorder, Severe Depression, Treatment, Winter Blues, Winter Depression
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